Kesha Suffers Another Blow In Her Legal Battle Against Dr. Luke
May 29, 2018Kesha has suffered yet another setback in her ongoing battle with Dr. Luke.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, a New York appeals court has sided with a previous judge who ruled that Kesha cannot request to remove herself from contracts tying her to Dr. Luke, whom she's accused of physically, emotionally, and sexually abusing her. The producer is suing Kesha for defamation after those claims, and in turn, Kesha sought to free herself from her contracts with him. That bid was once again shot down on Tuesday (May 29).
Kesha's proposed countersuit opened with the following statement, per THR: "You can get a divorce from an abusive spouse. You can dissolve a partnership if the relationship becomes irreconcilable. The same opportunity — to be liberated from the physical, emotional, and financial bondage of a destructive relationship — should be available to a recording artist."
The Rainbow singer's appeal reportedly claimed that she's owed royalties and that it would be impossible for her to perform under her contract due to an "acrimonious" relationship with Dr. Luke. But in Tuesday's ruling, the court rejected the latter claim because it was "speculative" and because she's recently continued to perform (she's also preparing for a joint tour with Macklemore this summer).
Kesha and Dr. Luke's legal dispute began in October 2014, when she filed a lawsuit against him citing various forms of abuse while also seeking to exit her contract with Sony. Dr. Luke subsequently countersued for defamation, and in August 2016, it was confirmed that she'd dropped her lawsuit against the producer to focus on the defamation suit.
If there is not another appeal by Kesha's team, Dr. Luke's defamation claim will be the only one considered in the coming trial between him and Kesha.